Mitochondrial diseases such as mitochondrial myopathy are caused due to mutations in the mitochondrial DNA. These diseases have unique characteristics that are often attributed to the way they are inherited and also because they are one of the key cellular organdies--the powerhouses of the cell that are critical to cell function. In most of these diseases, it has been found that free radicals play an important role by causing DNA damage. According to clinical studies, ubiquinol also known as Coenzyme Q10, which is naturally present in human tissues has been shown to effectively suppress free radicals and also increases mitochondrial energy output. But in patients with mitochondrial diseases, there are not enough levels of the antioxidant to prevent free radical damage.

The antioxidant exists in two different forms namely, ubiquinol and ubiquinone forms, but the former form has been shown to dominate the human tissues in terms of bioavailability, than the later form. But the irony is that it is only the ubiquinone form--the less bioavailable version of the antioxidant, which is commonly sold as an over the counter supplement, the quality of which is below satisfactory. Hence, there is a need to supplement the more bioavailable form of the antioxidant COQ10 along with the diet.

Solace Nutrition based at Rockville, MD, has recently launched a novel liposomal formulation of the more bioavailable form of CoQ10. The product called Cyto-Q comes in easy to consume pine apple orange flavor, and the advantage that this product offers to consumers is that since it is classified as a medical food and is available for prescription by doctors, the product comes under insurance coverage unlike conventional dietary supplements. Cyto-Q is used for dietary management for people suffering from these rare and difficult to treat diseases and is prescribed by a metabolic specialist or neurologist.

To develop the novel product, Solace Nutrition had entered into a partnership with Tishcon, a leading manufacturer of Coenzyme Q10 to develop the Cyto-Q formulation. Tishcon has received an Orphan Drug Designation status from the FDA for developing Coenzyme Q 10 for the treatment of mitochondrial cytopathies.

Cyto-Q used for dietary management for people suffering from these rare and difficult to treat diseases is truly a breakthrough medical food as it is developed as a liposomal formulation for the first time. The integration of novel drug formulation and delivery technologies such as these and the dietary supplements are expected to provide great relief to millions of patients suffering from metabolic disorders by delivering high-performance medical grade supplements. For companies specializing in drug delivery and formulation technologies, the nutritional supplements market could be a potential area to tap as they have a huge commercial potential.

Details: Mark De Fries, CEO, Solace Nutrition, One Research Court, Suite 450, Rockville, MD 20850. Phone: 240-403-2635. Fax: 401-633-6066. E-mail: info@solacenutrition.com. URL: www.solacenutrition.com.

COPYRIGHT 2008 Frost & Sullivan

COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning

Original Article can be found at http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0887/is_/ai_n28025226